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http://dx.doi.org/10.7840/KICS.2011.36B.3.287

A Machine-to-machine based Intelligent Walking Assistance System for Visually Impaired Person  

Kang, Chang-Soon (창원대학교 정보통진공학과 이동통신연구실)
Jo, Hwa-Seop (창원대학교 정보통진공학과 이동통신연구실)
Kim, Byung-Hee (창원대학교 정보통진공학과 이동통신연구실)
Publication Information
The Journal of Korean Institute of Communications and Information Sciences / v.36, no.3B, 2011 , pp. 287-296 More about this Journal
Abstract
The white stick mainly used for visually impaired person has difficulty in providing location information and effective countermeasures for emergency situations encountered during walking as well as detecting floating obstacles on the ground. In this paper, we propose a machine-to-machine based intelligent walking assistance system for safe and convenient walking of the visually impaired. The proposed system consists of a walking assistance stick used by the visually impaired and a server supporting multiple stick users in remote places through mobile communication networks. The stick equipped with ultrasonic sensors, GPS(global positioning system) receiver and vibrator not only detects floating obstacles, but also offers stick users with present location identification utilizing a text-to-voice conversion technology. Besides providing geographic information, the server notifies the emergency locations of users to guardian and aid agency, and it provides log information during walking such as the place, time and the number of accidents. Test results with a developed prototype system have shown that the system properly performs the functions and satisfies overall system performance.
Keywords
M2M; Walking Assistance; Location Identification; Mobile Communication;
Citations & Related Records
Times Cited By KSCI : 1  (Citation Analysis)
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